Fredag

So I thought I should document the last little corner of organization that I have left to do. Given what I've been seeing on all those episodes of Hoarders that I've been watching, this is nothing:

Heck, it's even fairly organized, for being a junk pile. It's a combination of yarn, quilts, plastic bags, wall hangings, holiday decorations, photo albums, and other craft supplies. I can live with this until the perfect storage unit comes along.

Today I stopped by Hekla, the yarn shop near Bislett that I recently discovered, in order to pick up the yarn I ordered for KE's next sweater. I  thought it might be worth writing up a review of the place, since I don't think it's very well known. Here's its rather unassuming exterior:

The easiest way to get there is to take the number 17 or 18 tram and get off at the Dalsbergstien stop. I had fully intended to take a covert picture of the interior, since the last time I was there the owner was hidden away in the back. This time, however, she had company and was at the craft table in the middle of the store, so I didn't dare.

The store has the mild but distinct odor of cigarette smoke (thankfully the yarn I ordered doesn't smell). It's kind of dreary and overstuffed inside, with all kinds of notions, fabrics, and yarns on every surface flanking the narrow aisles. The yarn is of surprising good quality (based on appearances, I was expecting a lot more acrylics...) and the prices are okay. Over all, this isn't a place I would seek out, though it is conveniently located midway between my work and downtown. It's useful as a reliable supplier of the particular yarn I was after, and the owner was very helpful with special ordering. She had the color card and placed the order right away. The yarn ended up being quite a bit more expensive than what she had in the store (75 NOK instead of 50)--she thought they must have raised their prices at the supplier--so that was a disappointment. All in all, if you're a tourist looking for a charming LYS experience in Oslo, this wouldn't be my first recommendation.

The yarn I bought is 700 grams of Hifagarn 2 Ask in the color Gulbrun (yellow brown), which totally lives up to its name:

The color is actually quite a bit sharper than this in real life. KE was a little aghast when I brought it home, but I actually think it's going to look great on him, especially with blue jeans and his blue eyes. The project will have to wait for a while, as I'm still working on all my stripes--both the striped pullover for E and the laceweight striped stole for me.

This is the start of a four-day weekend. I'm hoping to do as little as possible (besides knitting). I'll try to finish reading a biography of Kjell Inge Røkke that I started today, and do a little reading for an article I'm working on, but other than that it's R&R for this little lady...